U.S. Representative Mark Green (R-TN-07) spoke exclusively with The Tennessee Star’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy about his service as a U.S. Army veteran and lawmaker, reflecting on his career in public service and sharing his plans for a future in the private sector upon his retirement.
Green officially exited Congress on Sunday at midnight, leaving a vacancy in the U.S. House for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District.
On The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Green reflected on his time as a public servant, first recalling his 24-year career in the Army, where he served as a doctor in Army Special Operations with the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment at Fort Campbell.
In the Army, Green said he provided medical support during high-level missions and personally interviewed Saddam Hussein for six hours the night of his capture in Iraq.
“I had the unbelievable privilege to serve with the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment up at Fort Campbell…It was pretty crazy, to say the least,” he said.
In 2012, Green was elected to the Tennessee State Senate.
During his time in the Tennessee General Assembly, Green notably led the successful repeal of the Hall income tax, which is a tax on investments and dividends.
Green noted that the repeal of the Hall income tax helped make the Volunteer State one of the top states for retirees, moving it from one of the worst in the country to one of the best in the nation.
“It took two or three years of working really hard with my colleagues, but we repealed the Hall income tax…I really enjoyed that battle and winning that battle,” Green said.
Elected to Congress in 2018 and elected chair of the U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security in 2023, Green became the only member of Congress to be selected at the start of his or her third term to chair a major legislative committee this century.
As chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Green successfully spearheaded the historic two articles of impeachment against then-sitting U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Mayorkas, which came as a result of a five-phase investigation conducted by the committee under Green.
“I knew that with such a thin margin, we had to be strategic about how we did it. So we created the five phases of how we would just present the whole thing to the American people and then present it to Congress…We got a little heat for taking time, but we were successful. We impeached the first sitting cabinet secretary, had a good case against him, and took it to the Senate. Of course, Chuck Schumer threw it in the garbage, but being a part of that process, leading that process, I had a great staff that just worked their butts off. It took about six months, but we got it done,” Green said.
Moving forward, Green offered insight into his plans in the private sector, detailing how he will launch a global business aimed at helping U.S. companies expand internationally to compete with China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
“The Belt and Road Initiative is taking allies from us from an economic standpoint, so we have to compete internationally. I don’t mean moving business overseas. That’s the last thing I want to do. I want to bring business closer to home. If their business model doesn’t support coming into the U.S., we’ll get them to Guatemala. We’ll get them to other countries in the hemisphere to shorten supply chains, create opportunities in Latin America, decrease pressure on our southern border,” he explained.
Green expressed gratitude for his decades-long career as a public servant, adding that he feels like he’s continuing to serve America, just in a new way through business.
“I spent most of my adult life serving the country…I feel a little bit like I’ve always had an American flag in my backpack, in my rucksack, and now I’m going to go and actually serve the country in a different way,” Green said.
Tune in now to The Michael Patrick Leahy Show – your AMERICA FIRST news talk!
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Mark Green” by Mark Green.
